RE: [opensuse-autoinstall] ask-list for specific network interface

18 May 2011

      Hi,
Your explanations are helping a lot.  The system is closer, but still not quite reacting as I would expect/hope.

For example, since I use the boot options line to assign the hostip/gateway/netmask and install/autoyast parameters the interface that the system finds and assigns a name to (ie:eth3), is what I must use in the autoinst.xml file or after the first reboot during install a mismatch happens and the network is no longer accessible.  

The gateway/route still will not stay after the system is built, however, there is a /etc/sysconfig/network/routes.YaST2save file with the correct route.  

Here is a snippet of my xml file:
<ask-list config:type="list">
      <listentry>
        <default>167.16.163.223</default>
        <path>networking,interfaces,0,ipaddr</path>
        <question>Enter Server IP address:</question>
        <stage>initial</stage>
        <title>IP Address</title>
      </listentry>
      <listentry>
        <default>255.255.255.0</default>
        <path>networking,interfaces,0,netmask</path>
        <question>Enter subnet mask:</question>
        <stage>initial</stage>
        <title>Enter Subnet Mask:</title>
      </listentry>
      <listentry>
        <default>167.16.163.1</default>
        <path>networking,routing,0,gateway</path>
        <question>Enter default gateway address:</question>
        <stage>initial</stage>
        <title>IP Address</title>
      </listentry>
      <listentry>
        <default>SLES11media</default>
        <help>Be sure to follow naming conventions!</help>
        <path>networking,dns,hostname</path>
        <question>Enter Hostname (server name):</question>
        <stage>initial</stage>
        <title>Hostname Selection</title>
      </listentry>
	<listentry>
	  <default>68:b5:99:b8:34:1d</default>
	  <path>networking,net-udev,0,value</path>
	  <question>Enter Primary MAC address</question>
	  <stage>initial</stage>
	</listentry>
    </ask-list>
  <networking>
    <dns>
      <dhcp_hostname config:type="boolean">false</dhcp_hostname>
      <domain>1dc.com</domain>
      <hostname></hostname>
	  <nameservers config:type="list">
        <nameserver>167.16.104.11</nameserver>
        <nameserver>167.16.127.10</nameserver>
        <nameserver>170.186.79.70</nameserver>
      </nameservers>
      <resolv_conf_policy>auto</resolv_conf_policy>
      <searchlist config:type="list">
        <search>1dc.com</search>
      </searchlist>
      <write_hostname config:type="boolean">true</write_hostname>
    </dns>
    <interfaces config:type="list">
      <interface>
        <bootproto>static</bootproto>
        <device>eth3</device>  <!-- had to use whatever the system first assigned during initial boot -->
        <ipaddr>_ask_</ipaddr>
        <name>82545EM Gigabit Ethernet Controller (Copper)</name>
        <netmask>_ask_</netmask>
        <prefixlen></prefixlen>
        <startmode>auto</startmode>
        <usercontrol>no</usercontrol>
      </interface>
    </interfaces>
    <managed config:type="boolean">false</managed>
    <net-udev config:type="list">
      <rule>
        <name>eth3</name> <!-- had to use whatever the system first assigned during initial boot -->
        <rule>ATTR{address}</rule>
        <value>_ask_</value>
      </rule>
    </net-udev>
    <routing>
      <ip_forward config:type="boolean">false</ip_forward>
      <routes config:type="list">
        <route>
          <destination>default</destination>
          <device>eth3</device>  <!-- just my attempt to get the gateway to save, didn't work -->
          <gateway>_ask_</gateway>
          <netmask>-</netmask>
        </route>
      </routes>
    </routing>
  </networking>

Also, can you point me to where I can find more information as to what are valid options for the <path> statement. For example, 
<path>networking,interfaces,0,ipaddr</path> 
<path>networking,net-udev,0,value</path>

In SLES10 we had to use something like <path>networking,interfaces,interface,ipaddr</path>
Also, for the MAC address SLES10 used the format of:  eth-id-00-15-17-54-e8-fa  (dashes instead of colons) 

I do very much appreciate your help,

Patrick Swartz
UNIX Planning & Engineering (DSUSSE)
First Data 
402-777-7337 desk
402-201-1192 Company cell
402-871-8981 Personal cell

-----Original Message-----
From: Uwe Gansert [mailto:ug@suse.de] 
Sent: Tuesday, May 17, 2011 2:17 PM
To: opensuse-autoinstall@opensuse.org
Subject: Re: [opensuse-autoinstall] ask-list for specific network interface

Am 17.05.2011 um 19:04 schrieb Swartz, Patrick H:
...
Hardware team notifies the Linux team and says, "the server is ready for
you, the public network in on the second port and you need to use this
IP '10.100.10.1", and the Netbackup network is on the third port and you
need to use this IP '172.27.100.1'."
okay, so you have two static interfaces. Let's put those two into your XML file:

    <interfaces config:type="list">

      <!-- 1st interface, use "0" in the ask path to point to this -->
      <interface>
        <bootproto>static</bootproto>
        <device>eth0</device>

        <!-- ask for networking,interfaces,0,ipaddr -->
        <ipaddr>_ask_</ipaddr>

        <!-- ask for networking,interfaces,0,netmask -->
        <netmask>_ask_</netmask>
        <startmode>auto</startmode>
        <usercontrol>no</usercontrol>
      </interface>

      <!-- 2nd interface, use "1" in the ask path to point to this -->
      <interface>
        <bootproto>static</bootproto>
        <device>eth1</device>

        <!-- ask for networking,interfaces,1,ipaddr -->
        <ipaddr>_ask_</ipaddr>

        <!-- ask for networking,interfaces,1,netmask -->
        <netmask>_ask_</netmask>

        <startmode>auto</startmode>
        <usercontrol>no</usercontrol>
      </interface>
    </interfaces>

I have put comments with the <ask> path into the XML, in case you want to ask for those values.
"interfaces" is a list of NICs. The number in the path points to the number in the list, starting from 0.
So if you want to manipulate the first interface in the <interfaces> list, use 0 in the <path>. Use 1 for the second, 2 for the third and so on
...
So, I am thinking that an autoinst.xml file that would prompt the admin
team for the MAC address of the public-facing network interface and the
if you want to ask for a mac address for eth0, do it like this:

<networking>
  <net-udev config:type="list">
      <rule>
        <name>eth0</name>
        <rule>ATTR{address}</rule>
        <value>_ask_</value>
      </rule>
      <rule>
        <name>eth1</name>
        <rule>ATTR{address}</rule>
        <!-- example <value>00:50:51:bb:51:6f</value> -->
        <value>_ask_</value>
      </rule>
  </net-udev>
...
  <interfaces config:type="list">
...
  </interfaces>
...
</networking>

and use a question with a path like this:
<path>networking,net-udev,0,value</path>

For the second interface:
<path>networking,net-udev,1,value</path>

as you can see, the number is totally independent from the hardware. It points only to the number in the list in the XML file.
I know there is one confusing point in this. Where is the <rule> in the path?

Well, a config:tyoe="list" in autoyast can contain the same data structure multiple times. Like multiple <rule> or <interface> definitions.
Autoyast does not care on how you name those in the list. Autoyast will not even know how you named them because for AY it's only important that a list of data structures will come now and so it's only interested in the index-number in that list but not in the name you gave it.
I know it's a bit confusing at the beginning.
...
My question about understanding the <path> statement was so that I could
possibly use that in building the xml file.  For example in this
statement -- <path>networking,interfaces,4,ipaddr</path>  -- does the
"4" represent the actual interface?
the 4 would manipulate the 5th interface in the XML file:
<networking>
  <interfaces config:type="list">
    <interface>
... first
    </interface>
    <interface>
... second
    </interface>
    <interface>
... third
    </interface>
    <interface>
... fourth
    </interface>
    <interface>
<!-- the path points to this interface -->
    </interface>
  </interfaces>
...
</networking>

that's not eth5. It can be eth0 at the end. The number in the path describes only the position in the XML
Imagine the path as a tool to manipulate the XML file. Not a tool to manipulate interfaces, rules, users, ....
...
If so, how do I determine how this
is calculated? Does it start at 0 or 1, does it read the on-board
it starts with 0 but it's not calculated. It's just counted.

I hope I could shed some light into it.

ciao, Uwe Gansert

Uwe Gansert, Server Technologies Team
SUSE LINUX Products GmbH, GF: Markus Rex, HRB 16746 (AG Nürnberg)
Business: http://www.suse.de/~ug

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